Afro Samurai: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Afro Samurai: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie Review

Afro Samurai is an incredible and ambitious anime production. Featuring original animation by acclaimed production studio GONZO (Brave Story, Chrono Crusade), Afro Samurai was originally broadcast on the Fuji Television Network and WOWOW in Japan. In North America, Afro Samurai premiered on Cartoon Network.

Executive produced by Arthur Smith (Afro Samurai: Resurrection), Leo Chu (Batman Ninja), Samuel L. Jackson (Afro Samurai: Resurrection), Shinichirō Ishikawa (Desert Punk, Samurai 7), Afro Samurai is based on the original manga by Takashi Okazaki. Produced by Alex Gartner and Charles Roven, Afro Samurai is an exhilarating action series with plenty of swordplay. Featuring the voices of Samuel L. Jackson as Afro and Ron Perlman as Justice.

A fallen father. A young black samurai with ambition. The samurai has decided to seek revenge. The samurai wants vengeance for the lost life of his beloved father. Set against the backdrop of feudal era Japan, can the Afro Samurai find peace through revenge for his father’s untimely demise?

Samuel L. Jackson does a terrific job as voice actor. Even with a small part in terms of spoken lines and the amount of screen time devoted to these moments, Jackson has a lot of fun with his voice-acting. Afro Samurai is a bit of a slow burn action experience and it certainly emphasizes the visuals more.

The character designs by Hiroya Iijima (Chronos Ruler, Gravitation: Lyrics of Love) and Takeshi Koike (World Record, Spirit Warrior) are well done and impress in spades. Iijima and Koike did terrific and noteworthy character designs. The designs certainly add a lot to the production and make it all the more memorable.

The animation is one of the most significant and outstanding components of the production. Afro Samurai features stunning art direction by Shigemi Ikeda (Anti-Magic Academy: The 35th Test Platoon, My Hero Academia). Afro Samurai also features impressive animation direction by Hiroya Iijima (Basilisk, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood) and Michinori Chiba (Ai Yori Aoshi, The Galaxy Railways). The artistry of the series is something that rivals the best in animation. The creative energy of the animation brings out the best in the storytelling. The sophisticated art style is robust and exhilarating. There is so much worth appreciating in the series art. The animators certainly brought their A-game to the series and delivered iconic imagery in spades.

Featuring music by RZA (Afro Samurai: Resurrection), Afro Samurai is well-done and the soundtrack is one of the best in animation. RZA made an outstanding hip-hop soundtrack and one that has superb vibes and energy throughout. The soundtrack is iconic and became instantly memorable. The series manages to showcase a wonderful sense of big beat hip hop music and the culture of the soundtrack makes the series all the more compelling as an artistic vision.

Written by Tomohiro Yamashita (Last Exile, Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo) and Yasuyuki Mutō (Basilisk, Tokyo Revengers), Afro Samurai is well-written. The script is elegant and poetic. The sense of majesty in the writing style makes the action sequences all the more compelling. The scripting adds wonderful energy to the series. Even without much in the way of dialogue, the storytelling is quite compelling.

Directed by Fuminori Kizaki (Basilisk, Bayonetta: Bloody Fate) and Takeshi Koike (Lupin the IIIrd: Goemon's Blood Spray, Lupin the IIIrd: Fujiko Mine's Lie), Afro Samurai is a must-see gem. The animation is a huge part of the charm and the filmmakers understand how to showcase those visuals in the best manner. The results are outstanding.

Afro Samurai: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by Crunchyroll, Afro Samurai is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The high-definition video presentation is superb throughout. The transfer looks robust and colorful. The animation is wonderfully reproduced throughout. The crisp line art and visuals add so much to the transfer. Presentation quality remains impressive throughout the director's cut presented on the release.

Afro Samurai: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes lossless audio: English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround sound. The lossless surround sound mix adds a wonderful presentation quality to the release. The sound mixing is top-notch and surrounds are actively utilized throughout the presentation. The surrounds add great ambiance to everything – the rear channels well utilized for sound effects. The music by RZA is top-notch and manages to bring a lot of warmth to the series soundtrack. The sound direction by Yōta Tsuruoka (Arakawa Under the Bridge, Amagi Brilliant Park) is top-notch, too. The sound direction adds a lot of engaging fun to the experience.

Afro Samurai: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Afro Samurai:

In the Booth – Voice Talent of Afro Samurai (SD, 14:50)

RZA Music Production Tour (SD, 4:53)

Character Profiles with Commentary by Co-Producer: Eric Calderon (SD, 23:42)

Afro Samurai: Season 1 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Afro Samurai is a must-see action classic. The series features compelling animation and a unique visual style. The release provides the director's cut version of Afro Samurai. Afro Samurai is such perfect fun and the soundtrack by RZA is phenomenal. The Blu-ray release provides a quality high-definition transfer, lossless audio, and a selection of bonus features. Highly recommended.